1. Field of the Invention.
The present invention relates to a training device to assist golfers in developing a "muscle memory" in order to execute, reliably and consistently, a golf swing in which the face of the club strikes the ball as close to perpendicular to the target line and as near to the center or "sweet spot" of the club face as possible.
2. Description of the Prior Art
For optimum results in terms of accuracy and distance, the manner in which the club head travels through the golf ball contact zone is critical.
In other words, if the club face is maintained at right angles to the target line for a few inches before, at and for a few inches after impact, during the time period that energy is transferred to the ball, a good golf stroke will follow.
It is not sufficient for the club to make tangential contact to "hit" the ball since a golf club when used correctly acts in accordance with the principles of a catapult. A good golf stroke must therefore retain the club on line to allow the storage of energy in both ball and shaft until the point of which the club, in effect, "fires", known as the release.
For most golfers it is not the acquisition or the understanding of this basic knowledge; but, rather, the putting of it into neuro-muscular effect so that good strokes can be made, time after time.
As with all repeatable physical skills, it is necessary to develop a "muscle memory". Such development ordinarily occurs by being able to observe and interpret what needs to be done to correct aberrations from the desired course. Observation poses no problem in learning to pitch a baseball across the plate or tossing a basketball through the hoop. In the case of golf, however, the trainee is told to keep the head still and continue to look down until well after impact has occurred. As a result, there is a relatively considerable time delay between the actual swing and the mental feedback of the results of that swing, obtained by turning the head to follow the flight of the ball.
Even a slight delay impairs the development of "muscle memory" to the fullest extent. Instantaneous feedback is needed. Indeed the player under normal circumstances must complete the stroke and wait, holding the body in a different muscular configuration from that during actual ball contact, until accepting or rejecting visually the result of the stroke. This time delay is considerably greater than for any other physical action at the extreme of average human capability, such as throwing a ball to maximum distance, and is thus a major factor in developing a golf swing.
Once a player can actually see what is happening in the ball contact zone, it is possible to adjust the swing and to reach a repeatable optimum club head path at a much faster rate. In other words, once a golfer is able to see the club head pass through the contact zone, regardless of club head speed, and instantaneously relate the passage through the contact zone to an ideal path, as defined by a zone grid and target line, it follows that repeating the action can more accurately be visualized and the muscle groups necessary for this action can more readily be controlled and trained, consciously or subconsciously.
It is also known that muscle tone varies from day to day and even within any given day. The differences in muscle tone affect the flexibility of the player and thus the ability to repeat accurately the ideal motions required in a good golf swing. It therefore follows that some adjustment may be required to compensate for these changes in muscle tone and that instantaneous visual feedback will reveal the extent of the adjustment required. It also follows that the equipment used to provide the instantaneous feedback must provide the visual stimulus in any lighting condition and in any environment.
In summary, the key to development of "muscle memory" is actual perception of the club head path through the contact zone and instantaneous feedback.
A customary search disclosed the following U.S. patents relating to golf training devices of the instantaneous feedback type:
______________________________________ Barrus et al. 2,787,470 Heard 3,009,704 Strunk 3,107,920 Worrell 3,649,029 Brandell 3,753,564 Tredway, Sr. 4,108,441 Bott 4,805,913 Hoyt, Jr. 4,826,174 ______________________________________
Worrell No. 3,649,029 permits visual observation of the club head during the execution of a swing of the golf club by attaching a luminescent decal to the top of the club head; and a desired path of travel of the club head is defined by a grid pattern of luminescent material located on a base mat in front of the golfer. However, in order to be able to utilize the Worrell apparatus, it must be in a light limited environment since an ultra-violet light source must be used. Applicant's device, on the other hand, can conveniently be transported and used at all hours of the day or night and in full sunlight. Further, unlike Worrell's apparatus, applicant's device provides a protective or buffering structure which minimizes damage both to club and to grid in case the club head strikes the grid during the swing.
Lighting attachments for golf clubs are disclosed in Barrus et al. U.S. Pat. No. 2,787,470, in which a normally open weighted switch arm centrifugally actuates light bulbs during the course of a swing; and in Brandell, U.S. Pat. No. 3,753,564 in which an arrangement of lenses and a light bulb provides information relating to the orientation of the club face during practice swings. Neither reference, however, suggests the use of a contact zone delineator nor club buffering against damage from grid impact as in applicant's device.
Heard No. U.S. Pat. No. 3,009,704, uses a combination of lights and photocells, strategically located along an ideal club path for improving the putting stroke. Another putting practice device is disclosed in Hoyt, Jr., U.S. Pat. No. 4,826,174, using parallel rows of posts and parallel guide strips. To similar effect is Strunk, U.S. Pat. No. 3,107,920, in which pivotally actuated bar guides define a club path; but which is not limited to putting practice, as are the Heard and Hoyt, Jr. devices. Applicant's device, however, does not utilize elements which project upwardly above the grid surface and is therefore distinguishable over the references which do define the ideal path of the club head by various types of upwardly protruding elements.
Bott, U.S. Pat. No. 4,805,913, merely illustrates a mat including a stance placement grid and a swing path extension; and Tredway, Sr., U.S. Pat. No. 4,108,441, although providing a light bulb on the club head, utilizes the light to indicate to the golf pupil when the proper position at the top of the backswing is reached.
In summary, the eight references turned up in the search, taken either distributively or in combination, neither anticipate nor make obvious the golf training device of the present invention.